


last of our innocence

by ariquitecontrary (ItsAriyanna)



Series: Blue and Gold Love [4]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, finale rewrite
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-28
Updated: 2017-07-28
Packaged: 2018-12-08 03:34:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11638098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItsAriyanna/pseuds/ariquitecontrary
Summary: Finale rewrite where Betty and Jughead are at Pop's instead of Fred and Archie, which leads to Betty being shot.





	last of our innocence

Betty and Jughead sit across from each other in a booth at Pop’s, not really knowing what to say or where to go from here. 

Jughead is a Southside Serpent now that’s the only thing Betty knows for sure. Things had been perfect the night before. They had told each other they loved each other, they had finally admitted it aloud. The feeling that coursed through Betty when Jughead had told her he loved her was unlike any other she had ever experienced. She’d felt happy, _finally_ a sense of true happiness had ran through her. She’d been excited. Now that they’d taken this step in their relationship, everything felt so much more secure and certain. She had known from the beginning that Jughead Jones wasn’t like any other boy she’d ever known. He was different, he was everything. When she thought of where she’d be years from now, she always pictured Jughead by her side. She had been ready to give herself to him. 

She never even made out with a guy before Jughead decided to kiss her that day in her room, but there was no one else in the world that she could ever imagine losing her virginity to. She knew it was supposed to be something special and unique, at least that’s what the books and movies said. She didn’t care for any of that, though. As long as Jughead was the person she was with, it was special. She didn’t need roses and candles or cheesy music playing in the background. She just needed him. And she could have had him. 

If only. 

Now she sits in front of him, not knowing if she can accept the person in front of her. 

He’s wearing his brand new leather jacket. It looks good on him, she won’t try to lie. He looks sexy in leather and it’s a look she could have gotten used to if it weren’t for the serpent on the back of it that let everyone know who he was now. This wasn’t the Jughead she had known and she didn’t know if she could know him now or if she even wanted to. It had been one thing when it was just FP that was a Serpent. She could accept that, FP wasn’t her boyfriend. Jughead was a completely different story.

“I’m still the same,” he tells her. He’s said it several times since they’ve gotten to Pop’s. Betty had stormed out of the trailer once the Serpent’s had left last night. It was more on impulse than anything else. She couldn’t hide from him forever though, and she knew that. It was why she had agreed to come and meet him for breakfast. The pancakes in front of her stay untouched. 

“You’re already changing and you don’t even see it.” She doesn’t mean on the outside, not really at least. Jughead sits up straight, arm thrown over the back of the booth. It’s how it usually sits but where he’d been hunched over and broody before, now he sits up straight and confident. She wants to be here for it, she wants to love him through this, but it’s too much too soon and it’s confusing her. “Going to Southside High was one thing, but this is a whole different ballgame. You’re the son of the _leader_ of the Serpents, Juggie. What does that mean for you?” 

“It means I have a family, Betts.” He says it so gently. The words break her heart. She knows he’s right. With his dad in jail, the Serpent’s probably are the closest thing he has to a family right now. 

“You have me,” she reminds him, biting her lip. “I’m your family.” 

“I know you are, but they can protect me. They can offer things that you can’t.” The words sting but she understands what he’s trying to say to her. “This doesn’t change anything. I’m still the same person I was last night before all of this happened and I’m going to continue being that person.” 

“What if everything changes?” 

“What if it doesn’t? Or what if it does? So what if things change? We could use a little bit of change around here. Who knows, maybe things will be better.” 

She lets out a little snort, but she smiles at him, at the truth behind his words. He’s not trying to tell her what she wants to hear. He’s being honest.

“I love you, Jughead Jones,” she reminds him. “That’s one thing that won’t change.” 

It’ll take some getting used to and she still isn’t sure that she likes the idea at all, but she knows that if she truly loves Jughead then she needs to stand by him during this time. The Serpent’s are his family now but so is she. She can offer Jughead a different kind of protection than them. 

“I’m going to go to the restroom,” she tells him, standing up from the booth. “I need to wash my hands.” She’d been playing with the cap from her bottle of syrup and it had gotten her fingers a bit sticky. 

“Okay.” Jughead smiles at her before picking up a piece of bacon from his plate and taking a bite from it. 

Jughead is still Jughead, he’d been right about that. She had just been so worried about the damn leather jacket and what it symbolized that she was letting her mind run free. She just needed to cool down and splash some water on her face. Things would be okay for them, she knew it. Jughead was her soulmate, in every sense of the word. She wouldn’t let something as simple as a biker gang ruin them. 

She hears a commotion outside of the restroom and dries her hands quickly, wanting to hurry and see what’s going on. The door shuts quietly behind her and as she walks further into the diner, she can hear someone yelling. She tries to listen, but her heart is beating way too quickly in her chest. 

 

Jughead doesn’t know how to happens, one minute he’s eating his waffles and the next minute he looks up and someone is pointing a gun right at Pop. It doesn’t make sense. Who comes into Pop’s waving a gun around? No one. That doesn’t happen in general, not here in Riverdale and especially not at Pop’s. The man yells, points at a register and Jughead assumes he’s trying to rob the place. A burst of anger flows through him. Who is this person to demand money from Pop, a hardworking man who has never done anything wrong to anyone in his life before?

He stands up, he doesn’t know what he’s going to do but he knows that he can’t just sit here and watch this go down. He hears the tiny footsteps before he actually sees her. Betty steps out from the hallway that leads to the restrooms. Her face looks both confused and terrified. Jughead shakes his head at her, a cold fear going through his body at the thought of her being seen by the armed man. He motions for her to go back to the restroom, but she just stands there as if she’s frozen in her spot. 

The gunman finally seems to notice Jughead and he pushes Pop back before charging towards him, gun raised as he yells out obscenities. 

“Look, calm down,” Jughead puts his hands up, trying to show that he isn’t a threat. The man doesn’t seem to care, as he comes closer to Jughead. Before he knows it, he can feel the cold metal of the barrel of the gun being pointed at his head. The man is shouting something, but he can’t hear him. He can just hear the sound of his blood rushing through his body. It’s a weird feeling and he closes his eyes. 

“Hey!” 

It happens way too quickly after that. A loud pop rings in his ears and he waits for everything to go dark, for everything to stop existing. He _wishes_ that’s what would have happened. Instead he opens his eyes and watches in slow motion as Betty lifts a shaking hand to her side and presses down on it. His mouth falls open in surprise, in horror, he doesn’t know. She pulls her hand away from her side slowly and looks down at it, seeing it covered in blood. 

“Betty,” he whispers out, suddenly glued to his spot. Her hand continues shaking and she looks up at him, face looking more pale than he’s ever seen it and then he watches as she finally collapses. Only then does he move from his spot, running over to her and catching her as she falls to the ground. 

“Betty!” He yells out in fear, cradling her body in his arms. “It’s not that bad,” he whispers to her as she looks at him, eyes wide and scared. “Hey, hey. It’s not that bad, okay? It’s not that bad.” He puts his hand to the wound, trying to stop the bleeding. There’s a puddle of blood around them and it’s so much, it’s _too_ much. When he brings his hand away, it’s completely drenched in blood and only then does he start crying. 

“J---,” she tries to talk but nothing comes out and Jughead shushes her, not wanting her to tire herself out. 

“Don’t talk, don’t talk. You’re okay.” Her eyes start to close and he shakes her a little. “Stay awake, okay? Stay awake. Pop already called the ambulance, they’re on their way, but you have to stay awake.” She looks up at him, but it’s like she’s looking right through him as her eyelids flutter. “You have to stay awake, Betty!” She looks at him one more time before closing her eyes again. This time she doesn’t open them. 

“Betty?” He cries out. “Wake up, you have to stay awake!” He shakes her gently again, desperate to see her eyes open. “Betty!” She stays still and he screams out in agony. “You don’t get to do this! You don’t get to do this to me!” 

“Sir,” a gentle but stern voice speaks up behind him. “You need to let go of her now.” 

“You don’t get to leave me!” He yells down at her, crying hard as the paramedics take Betty away from him. His clothes and hands are covered in blood, _her_ blood and the sight is almost too much for him to bear. He watches as they set her onto a gurney and the sight hits him right in his chest and he feels like he can’t breathe. This doesn’t happen to girls like Betty. Betty doesn’t deserve this. Betty shouldn’t be leaving Pop’s on a fucking gurney. But she is. She is and there isn’t a damn thing he can do about it. 

 

Four days. Betty sleeps for four days.

Jughead stays by her bed, making sure that her chest doesn’t stop rising. Everyone comes by to visit. Veronica with her tears and expensive teddy bear. Archie with his sad eyes that never seem to cry. Kevin with a bouquet of flowers. Cheryl even stops by. She didn’t say anything though. She had just stood by the bed and looked at Betty, brushing the blonde’s hair away from her face every now and then. 

Her family comes by. Alice cries, Polly cries, Hal stands by with the most sorrowful look on his face. 

And Jughead never leaves. He doesn’t talk to anyone either. He just stares at Betty with a face void of emotions. 

On the fourth day, her fingers flex in his palm and he watches her eyelids flutter open. He doesn’t jump up for joy like he should have. Instead he just watches her. Once she looks at him, he hands her a cup of water, assuming that her throat is dry. She drinks the water and tries to smile at him afterwards, Jughead’s face just stays stoic. 

“Hi,” she croaks out as her voice breaks. “Have you been here the whole time?” 

“The whole four days.” Her eyes widen, probably shocked from hearing how long she’d been under for. “Everyone’s been by.” He gestures around the room, showing her the gifts that everyone had left. 

“That was nice of them. Is it just you now?” 

He nods. “Your mom went home for a shower. She’ll be back soon, she’ll probably come in her towel if they tell her you’ve woken up.”

Betty laughs before wincing in the obvious pain it must cause her. 

“Do they know who did it?” She asked as soon as she recovers. “Is anyone else hurt?” 

“No to both of your questions.” 

Betty frowns. Jughead can imagine the thoughts going through her mind, wanting to know who did this and why, but he’s already one step ahead of her. 

“I’m going to find out who did this,” he promises her, voice hard, as he squeezes her hand and looks her in the eyes. “I’m going to find him and I swear to God, I’ll kill him myself.” 

Betty just gives him an uneasy smile. “I love you.” 

She doesn’t believe him, he knows she doesn’t. She doesn’t think he’ll do anything, but she didn’t just witness the love of her life almost die in her arms. Something had been taken away from him in that moment, something innocent and he knew it wasn’t coming back. 

He tells her he loves her too and places a kiss on her forehead. 

He had seen a tattoo of a wolf on the man’s arm when he’d taken the gun away from Jughead and pointed it at Betty. He can hardly remember anything else, but he remembers the tattoo vividly. He keeps that information to himself. He doesn’t want the cops looking for him. They won’t bring him the justice he deserves. They don’t even know where to start. 

But Jughead does.


End file.
